Annual county health rankings released for state of Nevada, country
Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- The annual County Health Rankings were released early this morning by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
The rankings include a snapshot of nearly every county in the United States.
Rates of childhood poverty, rates of smoking, obesity levels, access to physicians and dentists, number of high school and college graduates, access to healthy foods and levels of physical activity are among the 25 factors that determine the rankings within each state.
Clark County is ranked number 9 in the state of Nevada, scoring high in the areas of adult smoking (22%), adult obesity (26%), childhood poverty (23%), single-parent households (35%), and fast-food restaurants (58%).
Residents of Clark County are also more prone to premature death; have a higher number of poor mental health days; and more children born at a low birthweight than the national average.
Storey County ranked number 1 overall. Lincoln County and Douglas County came in at No. 2 and No. 3 respectively.
Nationally, this year's rankings showed several new trends:
-- While rates of premature death are at the lowest level in 20 years, people in the unhealthiest counties are dying too early at more than twice the rates of those in the healthiest counties
-- Child poverty rates have not improved since 2000, with more than one in five children living in poverty.
-- Violent crime has decreased by almost 50 percent over the past two decades.
-- The counties where people don’t live as long and don’t feel as well mentally or physically have the highest rates of smoking, teen births, and physical inactivity, as well as more preventable hospital stays.
-- Teen birth rates are more than twice as high in the least healthy counties than in the healthiest counties.
-- Access to health care remains an important factor and this year the Rankings include residents’ access to dentists, as well as primary care doctors. Residents living in healthier counties are 1.4 times more likely to have access to a doctor and dentist than those in the least healthy counties.
For detailed information, click here.
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